Out of doors there was fitfully glinting sunshine upon the wet roofs; a pale blue now and then revealed amid the grey rack.

Two years ago he would have walked twenty miles on a day like this, with eyes for nothing but the beauty and joy of earth.

Was he not--he suddenly asked himself--a wiser man now than then?
Did he not see into the truth of things; whereas, formerly, he had seen only the deceptive surface?
There should be some solace in this reflection, if he took it well to heart.
Then his mind wandered away to Norbert Franks, who at this moment was somewhere enjoying himself.

This afternoon he might be calling upon the Crosses.

Why should that thought be disagreeable?
It was, as he perceived, not for the first time.